Tamil Nadu Governor forwards NEET bill to Centre

Nearly three months after the Tamil Nadu Assembly re-enacted a bill seeking exemption from NEET for students from the state, Governor R N Ravi has forwarded the legislation to the Union Home Ministry to be sent to the President of India for his consideration.

Chief Minister M K Stalin made the announcement in the Assembly on Wednesday crediting the “historic development” to the continued efforts of his government in ensuring that the Governor sends the Bill to the President.

“The Governor has sent the bill that was re-enacted by this House (on February 8, 2022) with regard to NEET to the Union Home Ministry for getting the President's nod. The Governor’s secretary called me a while back to inform me of this piece of news. I am happy to share this here,” Stalin told the Assembly.

Also Read | Send NEET bill to President like a 'postman': Stalin's scathing attack on Tamil Nadu Governor

He also appealed to members of the House, including those from the Opposition benches, to come together to get the Presidential assent for the bill. The Bill will now go to the President from the Union Home Ministry and is unlikely to get the nod since the Centre is against providing an exemption for states on NEET.

In his speech, Stalin also recalled the efforts taken by his government with regard to getting exemption from NEET for students from the state including the passage of a bill in September last year and pressure exerted on the Centre to ensure that it reaches the President’s desk.

Posting a video clip of his speech in the Assembly on his verified Twitter page, Stalin wrote the NEET Bill is connected to the “sovereignty” of the House. “Let us raise our voice together and achieve the final victory,” Stalin added.

Ravi returned the bill passed in September 2021 to the Speaker on February 1, but the government got it re-enacted within a week on February 8. Stalin met the Governor in March to remind him about the bill – even as the Raj Bhavan sat on the bill, the DMK and the Chief Minister went all out against Ravi by seeking his recall.

At an event on April 25, hours after the Assembly passed a Bill to clip the Governor's powers in the appointment of VCs, Stalin had torn into Governor Ravi, accusing him of “not even doing the postman’s job.”

NEET has always been an emotive issue in Tamil Nadu since it was first held in the state in 2017 with at least a dozen students ending their lives either due to fear of appearing for the exam or being not able to clear the exam. The state government wants the exam scrapped.

The Tamil Nadu Admission to Undergraduate Medical Degree Courses Act, 2021, which bans doing away with NEET and reverting to admitting students in medical colleges based on their plus-two marks, was passed by the state Assembly with support from the principal opposition, AIADMK, on September 13.

In an unusual move, the Raj Bhavan had on February 3 issued a press note which said the Governor concluded that the Bill “is against interests of the students, especially the rural and economically poor students of the State” after a detailed study of the legislation and a report submitted by Justice (retired) A K Rajan which formed the basis for the legislation.

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